Heart of Italy Spaghetti Sauce

My great grandmother was Italian, and she had the best spaghetti sauce recipe in the world! It is rather sweet and popping with flavor! My grandma also used that family recipe, my mom has been making it for as long as I can remember, and I enjoy making it as well. For a recipe to have traveled four generations and still be going strong is proof of a good recipe!
Just to clarify, this is not my creation, but I thought since my family enjoyed it so much, I'd write it down for the world to use. This does take longer than just opening a jar of sauce and heating on the stove, but it's easy and well worth the extra bit of work!

Place a pot on the stovetop over medium-high heat. Add the hamburger meat to the pot and gently tear the meat into small pieces.

 Once all the meat is nice and loose, pour the garlic powder evenly over the hamburger. Stir the garlic powder in, and stir the meat often to keep it from burning and sticking to the bottom of the pan.

Once the meat is thoroughly browned and cooked, drain any fat from the meat and then put the meat into a crockpot.

Add in the tomato sauce, tomato paste, sugar, and parmesan cheese. Stir all the ingredients together until well combined.

 

 Turn the crockpot on high and let it cook for seven hours, stirring it every few hours.

Yields enough to fill a seven quart crockpot
Ingredients:
4 lbs. thawed hamburger
1/2 and 1/8 C. garlic powder
1 6 lb. 9 oz. can tomato sauce
2 6 oz. cans tomato paste
1 C. sugar
1 C. parmesan cheese

Place a pot on the stovetop over medium-high heat. Add the hamburger meat to the pot and gently tear the meat into small pieces. (I use a large fork and/or a Pampered Chef hamburger chopper.) Once all the meat is nice and loose, pour the garlic powder evenly over the hamburger. Stir the garlic powder in, and stir the meat often to keep it from burning and sticking to the bottom of the pan.

Once the meat is thoroughly browned and cooked, drain any fat from the meat and then put the meat into a crockpot. (This recipe fills a seven quart crockpot, but I used an eight and a half quart crockpot.) Add in the tomato sauce, tomato paste, sugar, and parmesan cheese. Stir all the ingredients together until well combined. Turn the crockpot on high and let it cook for seven hours, stirring it every few hours.

This spaghetti sauce is now ready to be served! You can serve it right out of the crockpot, or freeze it and use it another day. While it tastes fabulous fresh, I find that it tastes even better the longer it sits; it's one of those things that improves with time.

Pink Sherbert Slushy

This is the perfect summer treat: colorful, cold, and sweet with little sourness. This super easy slushy, has only three ingredients: pink sherbert, instant pink lemonade, and ice cubes. Just pop this components into your food blender and you'll have a summer snack or dessert that children and adults alike will love!

Combine the lemonade, sherbert, and ice cubes in your food blender. Turn the blender on for about 30 seconds to a minute, or until the slushy is lump-free and well mixed. You may have to stop the blender once or twice and give the ingredients a stir yourself.

 

 Serve immediately for best tasting results.

 

 

Yields 3-5 servings
Ingredients:
1 1/8 C. instant pink lemonade, prepared
1 1/4 C. pink sherbert
25 ice cubes

Combine the lemonade, sherbert, and ice cubes in your food blender. Turn the blender on for about 30 seconds to a minute, or until the slushy is lump-free and well mixed. You may have to stop the blender once or twice and give the ingredients a stir yourself. Serve immediately for best tasting results.

 

Fruity Smoothie Summer Drink

What could be better than a cold and refreshing fruit drink on a hot summer day? This peach and strawberry drink is creamy and sweet, the strawberries giving it the perfect hint of tartness. Just toss the ingredients into a mixer and you have your drink waiting for you!
I've only made this recipe with fresh fruit, but I'm sure you could use frozen fruit if that's all that you have on hand.

 

Cube the peaches and half the strawberries; drop them into your food blender. (I used a Vita-Mix). Add the sugar, milk, and ice cubes. Turn on the blender for 30 seconds to a minute, or until everything is smoothly ground and mixed together.

 

Pour into cups and serve immediately.

 

Yields 3-5 servings
Ingredients:
2 whole peaches
15 strawberries
1/4 and 1/8 C. sugar
3/4 C. 2% milk
40 ice cubes

Cube the peaches and half the strawberries; drop them into your food blender. (I used a Vita-Mix). Add the sugar, milk, and ice cubes. Turn on the blender for 30 seconds to a minute, or until everything is smoothly ground and mixed together. Pour into cups and serve immediately.